Families homeschool for many reasons. In federal survey data analyzed by Pew Research Center, 53 percent of parents of homeschooled children named religious instruction as one reason, which means nearly half did not. Far more named concerns about the school environment (83 percent) or dissatisfaction with academic instruction elsewhere (72 percent), and half wanted a nontraditional approach.
If you’re in the group that wants a secular curriculum, the catch is that a lot of popular homeschool material is faith-based, and it isn’t always labeled clearly. This checklist takes about 20 minutes per curriculum and saves you from finding out in week six.
1. Read the science, not the sales page
Science is where secular and religious curricula differ most. Open the sample lessons on fossils, rock layers, the age of the Earth, life cycles and how living things change over time. A secular program teaches these the way mainstream science does, without framing them as one view among others.
Quick test: does the program say which science standards it follows? The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), the K-12 science standards developed by states, are a common yardstick. Mapping to NGSS (or your state’s standards) is a good sign.
2. Look for named standards everywhere
A curriculum that maps lessons to published standards is easier to judge and easier to explain if your state asks. For early reading, that might be the Common Core foundational skills. For coding, the CSTA K-12 Computer Science Standards. Vague claims like “aligned to grade level” with no named standard are a yellow flag.
3. Check the reading list and the history
Faith content often lives in the reading list and in history units rather than the table of contents. Skim the book list and one history unit. Secular doesn’t mean religion is never mentioned: a good world history covers religions as part of history. What you’re checking is whether the curriculum teaches belief or teaches about it.
4. Watch the “neutral” phrasing
Some programs describe themselves as “neutral” or “non-denominational.” Those words can mean “no particular church,” not “no religious content.” If the listing isn’t explicit, email the publisher and ask one direct question: “Is any lesson devotional or faith-based?“
5. Try a full week, not a sample page
Sample pages are chosen to sell. A full week shows you the real pacing, the real tone and how much grown-up time each day takes. If a program won’t let you see a full week without paying, that’s worth weighing.
6. Price the whole year
Add up everything: the core program, the teacher guide, the workbooks, the lab kit, the second kid. Some programs look cheap per unit and expensive per year. Free options let you combine pieces without the math.
Where Lantern Learn fits
Lantern Learn’s courses are secular. Lessons contain no religious content, science and engineering weeks are mapped to NGSS, and coding weeks to CSTA. Every course is free from the first day to the last, and every week opens without signing in, so you can run the full-week test in point 5 today.
- Science: Science Launch (K-5), Body Lab, Astronomy Year
- Coding: Code Crew, kindergarten to Grade 6 and up
- Engineering: Builder’s Lab
- Early reading and math: Tomorrow Trail (kindergarten to first grade)
- #homeschool
- #secular homeschool
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- #parents
Sources
- A look at homeschooling in the U.S.. Pew Research Center, . Accessed October 10, 2026
NCES data: 53% of parents of homeschooled children cite religious instruction as a reason; 72% cite dissatisfaction with academic instruction; 50% a nontraditional approach.
- Next Generation Science Standards. NGSS. Accessed October 10, 2026
K-12 science content standards developed by states.
- English Language Arts Standards: Reading Foundational Skills, Kindergarten. Common Core State Standards Initiative. Accessed October 10, 2026